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UNIVERSITY    OF    ILLINOIS    BULLETIN 

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Vol.  XXI  December  10,  1923  No.  IS 

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EDUCATIONAL  RESEARCH  CIRCULAR  NO.  23 


BUREAU  OF  EDUCATIONAL  RESEARCH 
COLLEGE  OF  EDUCATION 

EDUCATIONAL   GUIDANCE   IN 
HIGH   SCHOOLS 

By 

Walter  S.  Monroe 

Director,  Bureau  of  Educational  Research 


PUBLISHED  BY  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
URBANA 


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Educational  Guidance  in  High  Schools1 

Educational  guidance  as  used  here  refers  to  the  guidance  or 
direction  of  students  in  the  selection  of  subjects  and  also  to  the  classi- 
fication of  students  into  sections  so  that  better  adjustment  between 
the  school  and  the  student  may  be  secured.*  In  order  to  appreciate 
the  need  for  educational  guidance  it  is  necessary  to  recall  certain 
changes  which  have  taken  place  in  our  secondary  schools. 

Two  significant  changes  in  our  high  schools.  1.  Enlarged  cur- 
riculum. When  the  primary  function  of  the  high  school  was  prepar- 
ation for  college  the  curriculum  included  relatively  few  subjects. 
The  student  had  little  or  no  choice,  as  all  of  the  subjects  were  re- 
quired. Occasionally  it  was  recognized  that  some  students  probably 
would  not  go  to  college  and  for  their  benefit  certain  courses  were 
organized.  A  "commercial  course"  was  offered  in  a  number  of  high 
schools.  There  was  also  a  "general  course"  which  represented  some 
departure  from  the  one  designed  as  preparation  for  college.  Among 
the  causes  which  have  operated  to  bring  about  a  great  increase  in  the 
number  of  subjects  in  the  high  school  curriculum  has  been  the  de- 
mand that  the  high  school  prepare  for  life  rather  than  primarily  for 
college.  Many  "practical"  subjects  have  been  introduced.  As  a 
result,  the  typical  high  school  now  offers  a  great  variety  of  courses. 
No  one  student  can  take  all  of  them.  Generally  English  and  at  least 
one  or  two  other  subjects  are  required  but  the  students  are  expected 
to  elect,  under  certain  restrictions,  the  additional  subjects  which  they 
pursue  during  their  high-school  course. 

2.  Changes  in  the  character  of  the  student  population.  A  gen- 
eration ago  the  boys  and  girls  attending  high  school  represented  a 
highly  selected  group.  A  very  large  percent  of  them  had  definite 
intentions  of  going  to  college  and  preparing  for  some  professional 
career.  In  comparison  with  the  present  situation  there  existed  a 
relatively  high  degree  of  unanimity  of  interest  in  the  subjects  studied 
in  the  high  school  and  in  the  vocational  expectations  of  the  students. 


xThe  writer  desires  to  acknowledge  his  indebtedness  to  Mr.  Oscar  F.  Weber,  In- 
structor in  Education  of  the  University  of  Illinois.  The  bibliography  is  taken  from  an 
original  one  compiled  by  Mr.  Weber.  The  writer  has  also  made  use  of  portions  of  a 
manuscript  originally  prepared  by  Mr.  Weber. 

[3] 


Furthermore,  the  differences  in  capacity  to  learn  were  distinctly  less 
than  in  the  typical  high  school  of  today.  Within  a  generation  there 
has  been  a  phenomenal  increase  in  the  number  of  boys  and  girls 
attending  high  school.  Many  of  them  have  no  intention  of  going  to 
college.  They  desire  to  secure  additional  education  primarily  for  the 
purpose  of  increasing  their  earning  power  when  they  leave  school. 
Others  expect  to  drop  out  at  the  compulsory  age  limit  and  need  to 
select  those  subjects  which  when  studied  for  a  brief  period  will  be  of 
most  benefit  to  them.  Thorndike  has  estimated  that  in  1918  approx- 
imately one  of  every  three  children  reaching  their  teens  in  the  United 
States  entered  high  school.  In  1890  the  corresponding  figure  has 
been  estimated  to  be  one  in  ten.  The  change  which  has  taken  place 
from  1890  to  1918  may  be  indicated  by  saying  that  "for  every  one- 
hundred  children  who  reached  the  age  of  fourteen  there  were  approxi- 
mately three  and  one-half  times  as  many  beginning  high  school  in 
1918  as  in  1890."2 

The  increase  in  the  relative  number  of  children  entering  high 
school  has  produced  a  significant  change  in  the  general  intelligence  of 
the  group.  Accurate  measures  of  the  general  intelligence  of  high- 
school  students  a  generation  ago  are  not  available  but  it  is  reasonably 
certain  that  they  represented  a  selected  group  and  hence  possessed 
distinctly  higher  than  average  intelligence.  As  the  number  entering 
high  school  has  increased,  the  average  general  intelligence  of  each 
age  group  has  been  lowered  because  of  the  fact  that  more  children 
on  the  lower  levels  of  intelligence  than  on  the  higher  have  been  ad- 
mitted. The  decrease  in  the  average  of  general  intelligence  is,  how- 
ever, not  as  significant  as  the  increase  in  the  range  of  intelligence. 
Instead  of  having  a  group  which  is  relatively  homogeneous  with  refer- 
ence to  capacity  to  learn  we  now  have  to  deal  with  pupils  ranging 
from  the  very  bright  to  the  slow  and  dull. 

Investigation  has  shown  that  pupils  on  the  lower  levels  of  in- 
telligence have  only  very  slight  chances  of  doing  satisfactory  work  in 
the  more  abstract  subjects  such  as  algebra,  geometry  and  Latin  as 
usually  taught.  Proctor3  states  "there  is  good  ground  for  the  pre- 
diction that  75  percent  of  those  who  test  below  average  mentality  , 


2Thorndike,  E.  L.  "Changes  in  the  quality  of  pupils  entering  high  school,"  School 
Review,  30:357,  May,  1922. ' 

3Proctor,  William  Martin.  "Psychological  tests  in  the  guidance  of  high  school 
pupils,"  Journal  of  Educational  Research  Monograph  No.  1.  Bloomington:  Public 
School  Publishing  Company,  1921,  23  p. 

[4] 


will  fail  in  more  than  half  of  their  studies  during  the  first  year  of  high 
school;  that  50  percent  of  them  will  leave  school  to  go  to  work  during 
the  first  two  years  and  that  none  of  them  will  remain  to  graduate." 
This  statement  applies  to  conditions  prevailing  in  the  typical  high 
school  where  there  is  no  systematic  plan  of  educational  guidance.  It 
may  also  be  noted  that  the  pupils  of  low  mentality  who  pass,  learn 
more  slowly  than  pupils  on  the  higher  levels  of  intelligence.  Fre- 
quently they  require  different  methods  of  instruction. 

On  the  other  hand,  there  are  many  bright  pupils  who  are  failing 
to  find  in  the  work  of  the  school  a  challenge  which  is  worthy  of  their 
abilities.  A  few  become  bored  because  they  find  the  assignments  too 
easy.  Many  of  them  are  not  working  up  to  their  capacity.  Altho 
the  percent  of  such  students  who  leave  school  is  much  less  than  the 
percent  on  the  lower  levels  of  intelligence  who  drop  out,  we  have  here 
a  distinct  educational  waste. 

The  percent  of  failures  an  index  of  the  need  for  educational 
guidance.  One  index  of  the  need  for  educational  guidance  is  found 
in  the  high  percent  of  failures  in  many  high  schools.  As  indicated 
above,  the  majority  of  these  failures  is  found  among  students  on  the 
lower  levels  of  intelligence.  Under  present  conditions  they  have  only 
a  small  chance  of  success.  There  is  a  lack  of  adjustment  of  the  school 
to  the  pupils.  Advice  should  be  given  with  reference  to  the  subjects 
to  be  elected,  and  other  provisions  should  be  made  which  will  give 
children  on  all  levels  of  intelligence  a  reasonable  chance  for  doing 
successfully  the  work  which  they  undertake.  It  is  only  when  such 
provisions  have  been  made  that  we  can  claim  equal  educational 
opportunities  for  all. 

Investigation  has  shown  that  in  some  high  schools  more  than 
one-fourth  of  the  children  enrolled  in  certain  subjects  are  judged  to 
fail  in  the  work  which  they  undertake.  The  average  percent  of  fail- 
ures for  mathematics  has  been  shown  to  be  in  excess  of  20,  and  only 
a  little  lower  for  Latin.4  Altho  it  is  necessary  to  maintain  high  stand- 
ards, it  seems  likely  that  when  such  a  large  proportion  of  the  students 
fail  our  schools  have  not  attained  their  highest  degree  of  efficiency. 
Our  public  schools  are  maintained  for  the  purpose  of  preparing  child- 
ren for  effective  participation  in  the  activities  of  adult  life.  When  the 
work  in  a  given  subject  is  of  such  a  nature  that  a  pupil  has  only  a  very 
small  chance  of  success  the  school  is  likely  to  fail  in  its  purpose  so  far 

HD'Brien,  F.  J.    "High  school  failures."    Teachers  College  Contributions  to  Edu- 
cation No.  102.'  New  York:  Teachers  College,  Columbia  University,  1919,  21  p. 

[5] 


as  this  particular  child  is  concerned.  There  is  need  for  providing 
curricula  of  such  a  nature  that  students  on  all  levels  of  intelligence 
will  be  likely  to  succeed  when  they  make  a  reasonable  effort. 

Relation  of  standardized  tests  to  educational  guidance.  The 
use  of  standardized  tests  has  become  associated  with  educational 
guidance.  The  information  which  may  be  secured  by  these  measuring 
instruments  is  helpful  and  probably  will  make  possible  a  more  effi- 
cient form  of  guidance  but  it  is  not  essential.  In  any  case  the  guid- 
ance should  not  be  based  wholly  upon  the  information  secured  by 
(standardized  tests.  The  counselor  should  consider  the  student's 
previous  school  record,  his  interests,  his  vocational  expectations,  and 
a  number  of  other  items  in  addition  to  test  scores. 

Relation  of  educational  guidance  to  vocational  guidance.  The 
relation  between  these  two  types  of  guidance  is  very  close.  However, 
educational  guidance  is  broader,  from  one  point  of  view,  than  vo- 
cational guidance,  and  should  precede  it.  The  student  should  be 
guided  so  that  he  will  be  equipped  to  meet  the  moral  and  social  duties 
and  responsibilities  of  adult  life  as  well  as  those  concerned  primarily 
with  making  his  living.  The  purpose  of  vocational  guidance  should  be 
definitely  to  prepare  the  student  for  his  future  vocational  activities. 
Some  schools  consider  even  the  securing  of  positions  for  their  students 
as  a  part  of  the  vocational  guidance  work. 

Guiding  students  in  electing  subjects.  The  present  practise  in 
high  school  is  to  require  English  and  generally  one  or  two  other  sub- 
jects of  all  students  and  to  permit  the  election,  under  certain  re- 
strictions, of  the  additional  subjects  which  they  pursue  during  the 
four  years  of  their  course.  Thorndike5  has  recently  reported  that  in 
an  analysis  of  high-school  subjects  actually  being  undertaken  by  pu- 
pils in  ten  school  systems  the  results  show  an  astonishingly  large 
number  of  different  programs  elected  by  pupils  within  a  single  school 
system.  For  example,  in  one  school,  139  tenth-grade  students  re- 
ported 110  different  programs.  In  another  school  with  60  students 
there  were  45  different  programs.  The  results  of  the  investigation 
are  summed  up  as  follows:  "The  plain  fact  is  that  except  for  the  al- 
most universal  requirement  of  English  for  two  years  or  more  and  for 
the  very  common  requirement  of  algebra  the  first  year,  high-school 
programs  have  very  little  uniformity.     Whatever  arrangements  re- 


6Thorndike,  E.  L.  and  Robinson,  Eleanor.    "The  diversity  of  high  school  students' 
programs,"  Teachers  College  Record,  24:111-21,  March,  1923. 

[6] 


strict  the  selection  of  studies  the  students  are  permitted  to  take 
programs  which  are  almost,  if  not  quite,  as  varied  as  college  students 
at  Harvard  during  its  period  of  substantially  free  election." 

A  prerequisite  to  effective  educational  guidance  is  an  appro- 
priate offering  of  subjects.  This  number  will  naturally  be  greater 
in  large  high  schools  than  in  small  ones.  In  every  case  the  subjects 
from  which  election  may  be  made  should  be  planned  with  reference 
to  recognized  educational  objectives  and  to  the  various  levels  of  in- 
telligence. Some  subjects  should  be  of  such  a  nature  that  students  on 
the  lower  levels  of  intelligence  may  be  expected  to  do  them  success- 
fully; others  should  be  planned  for  students  on  the  higher  levels. 
Our  high  schools  can  never  be  highly  efficient  in  fulfilling  their  func- 
tion to  society  until  adequate  provisions  are  made  for  those  children 
possessing  superior  ability  as  well  as  for  those  of  average  or  less  than 
average  intelligence. 

Information  needed  by  counselor.  An  educational  guidance 
counselor  needs  to  collect  certain  information  about  each  student. 
He  should  have  at  hand  at  least  the  following  facts:  (1)  chronologi- 
cal age,  (2)  record  of  previous  school  work,  (3)  measure  of  general 
intelligence,  (In  most  cases  the  score  yielded  by  a  group  test  will  be 
sufficient.  When  there  is  reason  to  believe  that  this  score  is  not  re- 
liable, an  individual  test  should  be  applied.),  (4)  an  estimate  of  the 
pupil's  capacity  to  do  school  work  made  by  previous  teachers,  (5)  a 
statement  of  his  interests,  (This  might  be  expressed  in  terms  of  his 
favorite  subjects  and  the  ones  which  he  likes  least.),  (6)  educational 
plans,  (Does  he  expect  to  complete  high  school?  Does  he  expect  to 
attend  college?  If  so,  what  sort  of  college?),  (7)  vocational  plans, 
(8)  economic  status  of  the  home  from  which  he  comes,  (9)  health. 

The  counselor  should  be  acquainted  with  the  various  elective 
subjects  offered  by  the  school.  He  should  know  something  of  their 
content  and  particularly  of  the  type  of  students  for  which  they  are 
planned.  He  needs  to  have  at  hand  a  mass  of  information  with 
reference  to  vocations,  their  requirements  for  success  and  the  possi- 
bilities for  advancement.  In  a  large  city  the  accumulation  of  this  in- 
formation is  in  itself  a  big  undertaking.  He  should  be  prepared  also 
to  advise  those  students  who  expect  to  continue  their  education  after 
graduation  from  high  school.  They  may  need  assistance  in  their 
choice  of  a  higher  institution,  especially  if  they  are  interested  in  tech- 
nical schools  or  in  universities  having  special  colleges,  as  of  agricul- 
ture, engineering,  or  commerce. 

[7] 


Policies  of  educational  guidance.  There  seem  to  be  three  fairly 
distinct  policies  of  educational  guidance.  The  first  may  be  called 
one  of  enlightenment,  the  emphasis  being  placed  upon  making  the 
pupils  acquainted  with  the  opportunities  and  requirements  of  vo- 
cations which  they  may  enter  and  of  other  adult  activities.  There  is 
also  an  effort  to  explain  to  them  the  nature  of  the  subjects  which  they 
may  undertake.  Class  instruction  is  sometimes  given  in  the  ninth 
grade  in  vocational  and  occupational  civics.  Students  in  the  eighth 
grade  in  some  schools  make  a  study  of  the  courses  offered  in  the  high 
school.  This  study  may  be  supplemented  by  a  visit  to  the  high  school 
in  case  the  students  have  not  already  become  acquainted  with  its 
plan  of  organization  and  the  nature  of  the  work  given.  Certain  high- 
school  teachers  may  be  asked  to  talk  to  eighth-grade  classes  about  the 
various  subjects  offered  in  the  high  school. 

Under  a  monitory  system  of  educational  guidance  students  are 
warned  with  reference  to  their  probable  success  or  failure  in  pursuing 
certain  subjects.  Such  a  plan  of  educational  guidance  involves  the 
use  of  educational  tests,  particularly  those  for  measuring  general  in- 
telligence. Some  authorities6  recommend  that  the  results  of  these 
tests  be  explained  to  the  pupils  in  order  to  point  out  to  them  their  own 
weakness  or  strength,  and  thus  aid  them  in  formulating  their  plans. 
The  writer,  however,  is  doubtful  of  the  advisability  of  this  plan  and 
feels  that  unless  it  were  used  with  extreme  tact  it  might  have  a  dis- 
astrous effect  upon  the  student.  Advice,  however,  should  not  be 
based  exclusively  upon  the  information  secured  by  means  of  such 
tests.  A  student's  previous  school  record,  as  well  as  his  interests, 
should  be  considered.  The  nature  of  such  guidance  makes  necessary 
provision  for  individual  conferences  with  pupils.  After  they  have  been 
advised  with  reference  to  their  program  of  study  they  should  be  given 
an  opportunity  to  talk  it  over  with  their  parents  before  a  final  de- 
cision is  required. 

Under  the  "pigeon  hole"  policy  of  guidance  pupils  are  definitely 
assigned  to  certain  courses  on  the  basis  of  information  in  the  hands  of 
the  counselor.  Such  a  policy  of  guidance  prevails  more  frequently 
in  connection  with  the  division  of  courses  into  sections  than  in  re- 
spect to  the  choice  of  subjects.  The  consensus  of  opinion  seems  to  be 
that  no  child  should  be  deprived  of  the  opportunity  for  at  least  a 
reasonable  trial  in  any  subject  which  he  wants  to  study.    There  are 


6Kitson,  H.  D.    "Psychological  tests  and  vocational  guidance,"    The  School  Re- 
view, 24:207-214,  March,  1916. 

[8] 


many  cases  on  record  in  which  a  pupil  of  mediocre  ability,  as  shown 
by  a  general  intelligence  test,  succeeded  because  of  his  intense  in- 
terest in  the  work  and  his  desire  to  keep  up  with  the  class.  After  a 
pupil  has  had  a  reasonable  trial  arbitrary  adjustment  may  be  justi- 
fied. 

Limitations  of  standardized  tests  in  guiding  students  in  electing 
school  subjects.  The  coefficients  of  correlation  between  intelligence 
test  scores  and  school  grades  extend  over  a  wide  range.  A  few  are 
above  .60.  On  the  other  hand,  a  considerable  number  are  below  .50. 
Some  are  much  lower.  These  facts  mean  that  the  relation  between  a 
pupil's  intelligence  test  score  and  his  school  success  is  not  close.  There 
are  certain  general  tendencies  which  should  be  recognized,  but  numer- 
ous cases  have  been  found  of  pupils  having  average  or  even  below 
average  intelligence  who,  because  of  their  intense  interest  or  of  other 
reasons,  succeed  in  difficult  subjects.  The  relation  between  test 
scores  and  vocational  success  is  also  far  from  perfection. 

The  most  extensive  study  of  the  relation  between  levels  of  in- 
telligence and  occupational  success  is  given  in  a  report  of  psychologi- 
cal examining  in  the  United  States.7  From  a  study  of  this  report  and 
other  similar  investigations  it  appears  that  success  in  a  given  occupa- 
tion is  not  likely  by  one  whose  general  intelligence  is  below  a  certain 
level.  However,  there  are  a  number  of  occupations  corresponding  to 
most  levels  of  intelligence.  We  can  not,  tho,  even  if  we  know  a  pupil's 
intelligence  quotient,  advise  him  definitely  with  reference  to  the 
particular  occupation  he  should  enter;  we  can  say  only  that  his  suc- 
cess is  unlikely  in  those  occupations  for  which  the  average  level  of 
intelligence  is  materially  above  his  own.  The  particular  occupation 
he  should  enter  should  depend  in  part  upon  his  interests  and  other 
factors. 

We  should  keep  in  mind  that  when  predicting  the  future  success 
of  a  student  either  in  school  or  in  a  vocation,  we  are  dealing  only  with 
probabilities  and  not  with  certainties.  This  prediction  is  based  upon 
certain  assumptions  in  regard  to  ability  or  capacity  to  learn,  interests 
and  other  traits.  It  is  also,  as  we  have  just  indicated,  based  upon 
relationships  which  are  not  close.  We  must  expect  even  under  an 
efficient  system  of  educational  guidance  that  some  predictions  will 
not  be  reliable.    However,  there  is  evidence  that  the  number  of  mis- 


7Yerkes,  Robert  M.  "Psychological  examining  in  the  United  States."  National 
Academy  of  Science  Memori  No.  15.  Washington:  Government  Printing  Office,  1921, 
p.  819  ff. 

[9] 


fits  in  both  school  and  vocations  can  be  materially  reduced  by  an  in- 
telligent system  of  advising  students  in  regard  to  the  courses  which 
they  should  pursue. 

Classifying  students  into  sections  for  instructional  purposes. 
Certain  school  subjects  are  required  of  all  students  or  will  be  elected 
by  students  on  widely  different  levels  of  intelligence.  If  the  students 
taking  such  courses  are  assembled  in  heterogeneous  groups  for  in- 
structional purposes  and  the  same  assignments  given  to  all,  the 
bright  pupils  will  not  find  in  the  work  a  challenge  worthy  of  their 
capacity,  while  the  dull  ones  will  find  the  subject  very  difficult  and  in 
many  cases  fail  to  pass  it  successfully.  One  method  of  dealing  with 
these  individual  differences  is  the  classification  of  students  into  sec- 
tions according  to  their  capacity  to  learn.8  There  is  some  scientific 
evidence  in  favor  of  this  method  and  it  has  attained  considerable 
popularity. 

The  usual  procedure  is  to  divide  the  students  into  sections  largely 
on  the  basis  of  their  intelligence  test  scores.  In  any  case  where  there 
is  reason  to  doubt  the  reliability  of  the  test  score  the  previous  school 
record  and  the  judgment  of  former  teachers  should  be  given  consider- 
able weight.  After  the  division  has  been  effected  it  should  be  generally 
understood  that  transfers  will  be  made  whenever  there  is  justifica- 
tion. No  student  should  be  kept  in  a  "slow"  section  when  he  has 
demonstrated  his  ability  to  do  the  work  of  a  higher  section,  nor  should 
one  placed  in  a  "fast"  section  be  kept  there  unless  he  does  the  work 
with  reasonable  success.  It  is  not  possible  at  the  present  time  to  say 
that  this  method  represents  the  best  plan  of  providing  for  individual 
differences.  It  is  not  unlikely  that  the  most  efficient  procedure  will 
be  found  to  be  some  combination  of  this  with  other  methods. 

Limitations  of  intelligence  test  scores  for  classification  of  stu- 
dents. Individual  scores  yielded  by  group  intelligence  tests  are  sub- 
ject to  both  constant  and  variable  errors.  The  constant  errors  are 
the  same  for  all  pupils  of  a  given  group  but  frequently  are  unexpected- 
ly large.  The  variable  errors,  as  the  term  implies,  differ  for  different 
pupils;  for  a  few  they  are  relatively  large;  for  most  they  are  reason- 
ably small,  but  it  is  not  generally  possible  to  know  in  the  case  of  an 


8This  is  only  one  method  of  providing  for  individual  differences.  There  are  others. 
See  Odell,  Charles  W.  "Provisions  for  the  individual  differences  of  high  school  pupils." 
University  of  Illinois  Bulletin,  Vol.  21,  No.  4,  Educational  Research  Circular  No.  22. 
Urbana:  University  of  Illinois,   1923.      15p. 

[10] 


individual  pupil  concerning  the  magnitude  of  the  variable  errors  of 
his  score. 

The  limitations  produced  by  the  variable  errors  of  measurement 
are  indicated  by  the  inaccuracy  of  classifications  of  pupils  on  the  basis 
of  test  scores.  Geyer9  gave  the  Otis  Group  Intelligence  Test  and  the 
Illinois  General  Intelligence  Scale  to  120  pupils  in  a  junior  high- 
school  grade  of  the  Chicago  Normal  School.  The  scores  yielded  by 
the  two  tests  give  a  coefficient  of  correlation  of  .642.  The  author 
states,  however,  that  "if  these  120  pupils  had  been  divided  on  the 
basis  of  their  intelligence  scores  of  one  test  into  four  class  sections  of 
the  ordinary  size,  51  percent  of  them  would  have  been  in  the  wrong 
section  according  to  the  other  test  and  31.8  percent  of  them  would 
have  been  out  of  place  by  an  amount  equal  to  half  the  range  of  such  a 
class  section."  Breed  and  Breslich10  in  their  experiment  used  the 
Chicago  Group  Intelligence  Test,  Form  A,  the  Otis  Group  Intelli- 
gence Test,  Advanced  Examination,  Form  A,  and  the  Terman  Group 
Test  of  Mental  Ability,  Form  A.  In  the  case  of  a  group  of  seventh- 
grade  pupils,  they  state  that  if  the  pupils  were  classified  into  three 
sections  according  to  the  scores  yielded  by  one  test,  30  percent  would 
be  found  out  of  place  according  to  either  one  of  the  other  tests.  In 
the  ninth  grade  the  percent  displaced  was  found  to  be  slightly  greater. 

Administration  of  an  educational  guidance  program.  The  re- 
sponsibility for  the  administration  of  an  educational  guidance  pro- 
gram should  be  assigned  to  some  one  person  or  at  most  to  a  small 
committee.  In  high  schools  enrolling  several  hundred  children  a 
trained  counselor  should  direct  this  work.  The  principal,  provided 
he  has  had  appropriate  training,  may  act  as  director,  but  usually  the 
duties  and  responsibilities  of  the  principalship  will  make  it  necessary 
to  employ  another  person.  In  any  case  the  chief  counselor  should 
have  the  assistance  of  a  number  of  teachers  in  the  high  school  and 
also  in  the  eighth  grade.  In  a  six-three-three  type  of  organization 
provision  should  be  made  for  guidance  in  the  sixth  and  seventh  grades 
but  probably  the  most  important  work  will  be  done  in  the  ninth 
grade. 

Among  the  duties  of  the  chief  counselor  are  the  following:  (1) 
direction  of  the  testing  program,  (2)  training  assistant  counselors, 


9Geyer,  Denton  L.  "The  reliability  of  rankings  by  group  intelligence  tests," 
Journal  of  Educational  Psychology,  13:43-49,  January,  1922. 

10Breed,  F.  S.  and  Breslich,  E.  R.  "Intelligence  tests  and  the  classification  of 
pupils,"  School  Review,  30:51-66,  210-26;  January,  March,  1922. 

[11] 


(3)  collecting  vocational  information  to  place  at  their  disposal,  (4) 
making  them  acquainted  with  the  nature  of  the  elective  subjects 
offered  in  the  high  school,  (5)  establishing  an  efficient  system  of 
records,  (6)  reviewing  difficult  cases  of  guidance,  and,  finally,  (7) 
studying  the  results  of  the  educational  guidance  program  for  the 
purpose  of  improving  it. 

In  most  cases  the  best  results  will  be  obtained  by  giving  the 
standardized  tests  in  April  or  May.  The  information  collected  will 
then  be  available  for  use  in  guiding  pupils  the  following  September. 
For  students  who  are  entering  high  school  other  data  which  will  be 
needed  should  be  collected  either  during  April  and  May  or  the  sum- 
mer vacation.  If  a  monitory  system  of  educational  guidance  pre- 
vails several  meetings  should  be  held  with  those  pupils  completing 
the  eighth  grade  in  order  to  acquaint  them  with  the  high  school  in 
general  and  the  particular  subjects  which  they  will  be  eligible  to 
undertake.  As  indicated  previously,  a  visit  to  the  high  school,  unless 
they  are  well  acquainted  with  it,  is  advisable. 

An  adequate  system  of  records  is  necessary.  There  should  be  an 
individual  record  blank  for  each  student.  This  blank  should  provide 
space  for  the  student's  name,  his  chronological  age,  nationality,  the 
economic  status  of  his  parents,  health,  previous  school  experience, 
scores  on  standardized  tests,  educational  plans,  vocational  ambitions, 
and  the  subjects  which  he  would  like  to  pursue  in  high  school.  The 
records  should  be  kept  up  to  date*  A  clerical  force  adequate  for  this 
purpose  should  be  provided  by  the  school.  It  is  false  economy  to 
require  this  work  to  be  done  by  the  chief  counselor  or  by  teachers. 

Many  details  of  the  actual  procedure  for  dealing  with  students 
will  depend  upon  the  particular  policy  of  educational  guidance 
adopted.  Usually,  however,  it  will  be  necessary  to  arrange  for  in- 
dividual conferences  with  pupils  in  addition  to  meetings  with  groups. 
In  any  case  there  should  be  definite  provision  made  for  carrying  out 
the  program  of  educational  guidance  decided  upon.  It  should  not  be 
thought  of  as  something  extraneous,  but  should  be  considered  a  vital 
and  integral  part  of  the  school's  activities. 


[12] 


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Branson,  Ernest  P.  "An  experiment  in  arranging  high-school  sections  on  the  basis 
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[13] 


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[14] 


CIRCULARS  OF  THE  BUREAU  OF  EDUCATIONAL 
RESEARCH,  COLLEGE  OF  EDUCATION,  UNI- 
VERSITY OF  ILLINOIS,  URBANA,  ILLINOIS 

No.  12.  Monroe,  Walter  S.  Announcements  of  the  Bureau  of  Educa- 
tional Research  for  1922-23. 

No.  13.  Monroe,  Walter  S.   Definitions  of  the  Terminology  of  Edu- 
cational Measurements. 

No.  14.  Streitz,  Ruth.   Gifted  Children  and  Provisions  for  Them  in 
Our  Schools. 

No.  15.  Monroe,  Walter  S.  Educational  Tests  for  Use  in  Elementary 
Schools. 

No.  16.  Odell,  Charles  W.    The  Effect  of  Attendance  Upon  School 
Achievement. 

No.  17.  Mohlman,  Dora  Keen.    The  Elementary  School  Principal- 
ship. 

No.  18.  Monroe,  Walter  S.  Educational  Tests  for  Use  in  High  Schools. 

No.  19.  Streitz,  Ruth.    Provisions  for  Exceptional  Children  in   191 
Illinois  Cities. 

No.  20.  McClusky,  Frederick  Dean.    Place  of  Moving  Pictures  in 
Visual  Education. 

No.  21.  Monroe,  Walter  S.   Announcement  of  the  Bureau  of  Educa- 
tional Research  for  1923-24. 

No.  22.  Odell,  Charles  W.   Provisions  for  the  Individual  Differences 
of  High  School  Pupils. 

No.  23.  Monroe,  Walter  S.  Educational  Guidance  in  High  Schools. 

A  limited  number  of  copies  of  these  educational  circulars  are  available  for  free 
distribution  to  superintendents  and  teachers  in  Illinois.  We  shall  be  glad  to  add  to 
our  mailing  list  for  these  circulars  the  names  of  any  teachers  or  superintendents  who 
care  to  receive  them  regularly.  We  shall  be  glad  also  to  send  additional  copies  of  any 
circular  to  superintendents  or  principals  for  distribution  among  their  teachers.  Ad- 
dress all  communications  to  the  Bureau  of  Educational  Research,  University  of 
Illinois. 


A 


X. 


